


And Sundowns Mend Rhett

by its_mike_kapufty



Series: AU Biscuits [4]
Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: ASMR, ASMRotica, Don't copy to another site, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-10
Updated: 2019-10-10
Packaged: 2020-12-07 19:10:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20980925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/its_mike_kapufty/pseuds/its_mike_kapufty
Summary: Link is an ASMRtist with accolades.Rhett is a combat veteran who has trouble sleeping.





	And Sundowns Mend Rhett

**Author's Note:**

> Wrote this little blurb a while back. Thought I might as well add it to the AU Biscuit series!

Sleeping is hard when you've seen too much of the worst of humanity.

Thankfully there are folks online who can help. They're self-trained to take that edge and dull it down using sounds, induce pleasurable relaxation, sometimes with props, other times just with the click and phoneme of language to make hearts and bodies feel closer. When Rhett delves into this, he doesn't expect it to be of any help. He'd simply seen it mentioned on a support forum.

But it doesn't take him long to find one Link Neal: a popular, calming presence with stark, slow-blinking eyes and a honeyed timbre that reminds him of home. His voice is as comforting as his appearance.

Why would Rhett keep looking around once he has a favorite?

* * *

ASMRtists, as they're called, often take commissions for private videos. Custom ones where folks can make requests of favorite trigger words, _"stipple stipple stipple."_ Link is one of these artists, and Rhett doesn't waste time taking advantage of that clandestine service. If nothing else, going to bed at night is easier when he knows he has a small collection of videos at his fingertips, ones of Link staring at him through time and space, arms folded under his chin in between two high-end microphones.

Rhett never makes specific requests for triggers. He'd rather just let Link do what he's good at.

The personalized intros are nice, though. 

_"Hey, Rhett. I hope you had a good day today. Yeah? I did, too."_

Even if Rhett had not had a good day, he could trick himself into believing it true when Link wished it for him.

It's soft and sweet when Link takes his time hushing that everything is going to be okay. That Rhett can let his guard down and fall asleep, and Link will watch out for him and ensure he stays safe. It had been scary the first time, to consider that; if Rhett fell asleep and gunfire rained, who would protect Link?

But the first night that that worry ekes away entirely, Rhett sleeps better than he has in years.

The next time he commissions a video, he asks if Link can use whatever props he likes, just to give his library some variety. And not that Link is the type to let this sort of thing slip through the cracks, but he requests any sudden, loud, accidental noises be cut from the footage. _I won't be mad if the video jumps. Just please, no banging sounds._

In the response email, Link assures him that he won't ever let that happen.

* * *

One day, Rhett gets a video he hadn't paid for. 

At first he believes it a mistake, and goes to tell Link such, but the first line of the email's body assures him otherwise.

_Rhett,_

_I wanted to make this for you, free of charge. Thank you for supporting me._

The video is lovely and warm-toned, gives off the impression that they're in a small room, huddled on a bed together. It's split-screen, not something Rhett's seen in any of Link's other work, and one camera is angled down to view a notepad on a pillow.

_"I'm gonna write some of my favorite things, Rhett. There's a lot of good in the world," _Link whispers, adjusting to get comfy and offering a chaste smile to the camera on his face. _"I'll start with cereal. Food is good, don't you think? We're lucky we get to taste it. Cereal, cereal, cereeeeal."_ He writes the word, slow and careful, the pen scratching pleasantly on the paper. 

Rhett doesn't watch the side of the screen with the notepad.

_Sunbathing. _

_Laughter. _

_Sneakers._

The list goes on, and Rhett watches, attentive. This is one video during which he refuses to fall asleep.

At the end, Link gently sets aside the notepad and pen and rests his head in his hands, making "eye contact".

_"What are your favorite triggers, Rhett? Tell me the things you like. I want to know."_

Rhett responds truthfully to the email, _A__nything involving you. Thank you._

* * *

They exchange numbers, and furthermore, actually begin texting one another pretty regularly. Small things: what they did that day, food they enjoyed, plans for the weekend.

Link always has more to say than Rhett, but that's okay. He lives a more active life. And Rhett is simply one of Link’s Patreon supporters; it’s considerate that Link cares enough about his patrons to open up to them in the first place.

One night, when Rhett is having a horrible time with things clawing up from their resting places, he texts Link. It's meant to be like any other text. Friendly, conversational, albeit a bit more sincere.

_some nights are so much worse than others._

And not a minute later, his phone rings.

“…Hello?”

_“Hey.”_ Link is speaking gently. Rhett would recognize his whisper anywhere, and hearing it live is strange. _“You okay?”_

“Uhh… not really, if I’m being honest.”

_“Mm. Do you mind if I just talk for a while, then?”_

Rhett isn’t sure what he means, but ten minutes later, Link has made everything better. He tells Rhett what his back yard looks like. How he made risotto for his mom, and she enjoyed it. Mentions that he's calling from his recording room and apologizes for any background noise he can't edit out. There isn't any; he's being overly-kind.

After a while, Rhett chuckles. “If you’re not careful, I’m gonna fall asleep."

Link laughs too. _“Why do you think I called?”_

That's the first time he makes Rhett blush.

* * *

Link feels comfortable enough to press, and asks Rhett what his favorite triggers are.

_“Seriously. Not just me, what do you like? I wanna make a video for you.”_

“You’ve made about a dozen already. I’ve gotten way more than I’ve paid for.”

_“Please, Rhett? I want to. I want you to feel better. Want you to sleep better. I know I help with that.”_

Rhett sighs into the receiver. Link is stubborn. “I’ll send you a link to my playlist. It’s a big mix of everything I like.”

And he does.

Later that night when Rhett is trying to unwind and watch TV, a horrifying realization hits him. One that had been lurking in the back of his brain all day.

There had been some… breathy stuff, on that playlist. ASMRotica, specifically, of men moaning in arousal and whispering dirty nothings to the listener. Link’s going to see that, and he's going to think Rhett's a creep.

The video Rhett gets in his inbox not an hour later suggests that Link didn’t mind, actually.

And after watching Link whisper himself through a jack-off session from the shoulders up, laying in bed and staring up at Rhett and Rhett alone? He sleeps better than he has in recent memory, tired in two ways.

* * *

Rhett doesn’t have any nice equipment, but when he wakes up the next day and decides he’s going to make a video for Link in turn, that doesn’t stop him.

He gets his earbuds, and on his phone, records a ten minute video of himself whispering to the camera – to Link. He tells him how much he appreciates him, not knowing why someone like Link would even begin to care about a mess of a person like Rhett. He pours praises on him, he’s a good person and so full of light and kindness, _such_ a good person.

An angel, to save Rhett from so much needless anguish.

When he sends it to Link, Link doesn’t respond right away.

But a few hours later, Rhett gets a text.

_You gave me tingles._

Rhett smiles. 

_it’s okay if i didn’t _

_Rhett, that’s my new favorite video. Your voice, your face? I might need to edit my list of favorites. _

_You made me feel a lot more than tingles._

And Rhett’s not sure how to respond... but it makes him blush again.


End file.
